DESIGN

Design is very much a matter of taste, but each of these phones has its own merits. The HTC One (M8) has a metal unibody that helps it to feel very much like a premium device. Sony's Xperia Z2 Gorilla Glass back and front feels classy too, but perhaps a bit bulky and unyielding -- it's only the largest of the three by a couple of mm, but its blocky shape and weight makes it feel even bigger. Of the three, the Galaxy S5 feels the cheapest, even though Samsung has upgraded its slim plastic back with a tactile, dimpled grippiness. It's also the lightest and (just about) slimmest, making it the most pocket-friendly of the three.

Both the Samsung and the Sony boast water and dustproof credentials with their IP58 and IP67 accreditation respectively -- the Sony should be able to withstand a depth of 1.5m rather than the Samsung's 1m for up to half an hour. The HTC doesn't have that luxury -- despite the solid feel of its casing, it's the one you have to be careful with.

Advertisement

Winner: HTC for style, Samsung for practicality, Sony for toughness

Nate Lanxon

Read next

The beautiful way stars form out of clumps of gas is visualised for the first time

ByAbigail Beall

UNIQUE FEATURES

Each of the phones has its own twist on the Android interface with proprietary widgets and features. HTC offers the BlinkFeed media aggregator, which irritates some by the fact that you can't remove it, unlike Samsung's My Magazine version. Both the Samsung and HTC have an infrared blaster which allows you to use your phone as a remote control, which the Sony lacks.

The HTC is available with the "Dot View" case/screen cover available as an optional extra that displays a dot matrix time, weather and message updates when you double tap it. A wee bit gimmicky perhaps, but nice.

So far, Samsung probably has the edge for accessories with the Gear 2 and Gear Fit smart watches. But with more Android wearables (which aren't tied to a specific manufacturer) due this year, that won't last long. Samsung's S Health app is nicely integrated too, working with the wearable devices to keep track of your training and wellness, but again, similar apps are appearing on Google Play all the time -- it's unlikely to be an area that Samsung will dominate for much longer.

Advertisement

Winner: Samsung

CAMERA AND VIDEO

HTC has gone for a very different approach, with two camera lenses to create additional focus effects and the same "UltraPixel" method we saw on the HTC One, which claims that less, but larger pixels is the way to go. Hence it has a comparatively paltry four megapixels but the picture quality goes way beyond what that suggests. Even so, the amount of detail and sharpness of focus just doesn't compare with its rivals here.

Read next

This is the one! Super-Earth 40 light years away is our 'best chance of finding alien life yet'

ByAbigail Beall

Although all three have defocusing features, allowing you to blur objects in the background to help the foreground to stand out, HTC's version is probably the most effective, though in all cases it feels like a bit of a blunt instrument and they all delivered mixed results.

The S5's 16-megapixel snapper comes armed with a range of features and just about the fastest autofocus we've yet seen --

Advertisement

Samsung claims 0.3 seconds, and it certainly feels like it.

Pictures are sharp and detailed and it can record ultra-high res 4K video too.

But Sony's 20.7-megapixel is clearly in poll position. It has the higher pixel count (despite what HTC claims, on this evidence, the more the merrier), records 4K video and has a range of tech borrowed from Sony's dedicated digital cameras, including the Exmor R sensor with G lens technology. It's very quick to start up, quick to autofocus and while all three have lots of features and modes, the bottom line is the Sony's image quality is ahead of the rest.

Read next

Mystery of the missing mass: huge cloud of hydrogen is to blame for holes in the Milky Way

ByAbigail Beall

Winner: Sony

Nate Lanxon

SCREEN AND SPECIFICATIONS

All three devices use Qualcomm's latest quad-core Snapdragon 801 processor with the S5 running at 2.5GHz, slightly ahead of the other two's 2.3GHz. The Sony uses 3GB of RAM while the other two get by with 2GB. They're all fast and slick and none suffer from any noticeable signs of lag. Sony also has the biggest battery --

3,200mAh compared to the Samsung's 2,800 and the HTC's 2,600. It doesn't give it a very noticeable advantage -- HTC's One M8, despite having the lowest number, makes good use of energy efficiency.

Comparing screens at this level is a tricky business -- they all look bright, vibrant and gorgeous. All boast full HD resolutions of 1,920x1,080 pixels but though the difference in size, Samsung smallest at five inches, Sony largest at 5.2, means that on paper the Samsung should be sharpest, it's an extremely difficult call with the naked eye. The Samsung possibly appears a little brighter, and the colours a bit more saturated, probably due to the Super AMOLED screen technology. But the Sony's larger size gives it the edge when watching movies and the colours are arguably more natural -- great viewing angles too. The HTC however comes in-between these two -- absolutely nothing wrong with it, but it doesn't particularly stand out either.

Winner: Sony

VALUE

Price-wise, they're all similar, and shopping around for bundles and tariffs soon makes a mockery of the official list prices which put the Sony in the most expensive spot.

Advertisement

Winner: None

Verdict

This clash of the titans is very much a case of horses for courses with no clear winner. The Sony did particularly well in some categories, but its bulk and weight will count against it for many. The HTC has the edge for style but most of its features don't tend to excel. The Samsung on the other hand is a great all-rounder, managing power, ability and features within its relatively slim and lightweight casing.